but Series 1 is the last time it made any sense - it worked as two 'normal' boring blokes and their boring lives with the shocking bits genuinely catching you off guard, but it's not long before their back stories are too mental for any plausible suspension of disbelief.

2 & 3 - classic period
4 - cracks are starting to show but it's still very good and rounds off the story nicely. when i first watched it i assumed this was gonna be the end.
5- hated it first time round but it actually has a lot of funny moments. story-wise it's a bit surplus to requirements though.
6 & 7 - really really average.
8 - slightly better than 6 & 7, funnier than it's been in a while, but still a far cry from the good old days.
9 - ???